The 3rd South Australian Space Forum, held on 7 June 2017 at the Adelaide Convention Centre, was a crucial milestone leading up to the 68th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) 2017.

The event provided the South Australian Government, along with the Space Industry Association of Australia and the IAC local organising committee with the opportunity to brief the community on the progress of the state’s preparation and participation in the IAC, as well as promoting local participation.

The now biennial forum attracted over 150 attendees to hear from key note speakers including representatives from the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman and small local entrepreneurs focussing on Venture capitalism in the ‘NewSpace’ economy.

The full speaker list included:

  • ACM Sir Angus Houston AK AFC (Ret’d), Chair, Defence SA Advisory Board
  • GPCAPT Darren May, Director Defence Space Coordination Office, Royal Australian Air Force, Department of Defence
  • Ms Jennifer Doyle, Manager Civil Space and Cyber Security, Industry Growth Division, Department of Industry, Innovation and Science
  • Ms Susan Cameron, Executive Director Learning Improvement, Department for Education and Child Development Government of South Australia
  • Mr Brett Biddington AM, Chief Executive, 68th IAC 2017 Local Organising Committee
  • Mr Michael Davis, Chair, Space Industry Association of Australia
  • Mr Dane McCormack, Business Growth and Execution – Australia & New Zealand Space Systems Company, Lockheed Martin Corporation
  • Ms Hannah Scherer, Australian Aerospace Programs Technical Lead, Northrop Grumman Australia
  • Dr Nick Stacy, Research Leader, National Security and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Division, Defence Science and Technology Group
  • Associate Professor Gottfried Lechner, Director, Institute for Telecommunications Research University of South Australia
  • Ms Flavia Tata Nardini, Chief Executive Officer, Fleet Space Technologies
  • Mr Niki Scevak, Managing Director, Blackbird Ventures
  • Mr Chris Ahern, Director, Earth Space Robotics